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Good Advice

This is a Wonderful article and well worth the read. I have personally used the internet to search bloodlines and eventually import two dogs. I have been very pleased with the puppies I chose and worked very closely with their breeder â€“ this was a task that took almost a year for my first pup.

I would have to say this â€“ there are good breeders and bad breeders no matter where you look. For those who choose to use the internet as a tool my personal suggestion would to â€“ be wise, know exactly what you are wanting before you contact the breeder, ask quesitons, check references and be patient - but most of all - trust your "gut feelings"

I think the number one red flag is -- if you contact a breeder (or site that seems to be for a breeder) on the net and they are willing to sell you a puppy right away based only on the query alone, or on the basis of a few brief emails that are more about the shipping process and payments, you are not dealing with a good breeder. Any good breeder would want to talk, get a good sense of whether YOU can offer a good home to their puppies, will want to educate you on cavaliers, health issues, general care etc.

I came across a really sad thread this morning from a site where people were discussing buying cavoodles and other crossbreeds. They attacked someone who criticised such breedings. Yet showed such ignorance -- guessing they would have healthier dogs and could avoid MVD and SM, as if the genes don't have a 50/50 chance of surfacing from EITHER breed's health problems. And of course, disregarding the fact that no breeder who breeds for health and cares about the breed will breed crossbreed puppies and sell them. So you aren't starting from a level playing field, with all else being equal, to begin with -- you are starting with what are probably indifferent dogs not bred for health in their own lines.

But about cross breeds - even if they do have 50:50 chance of passing on their bad genes, there is a decreased chance of the other dog of a different breed also passing on the same bad genes (i.e. poodles passing on MVD or SM). So with recessive diseases or diseases that require more than 1 bad gene, crosses will have a greater chance of not inheriting these diseases.

But as soon as you start crossing crosses to crosses, you can re-concentrate the bad genes.

Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole.
--Roger Caras